UN peacekeeper kills Eritrean

2006-10-26 10:54

Les Neuhaus

Addis Ababa - A United Nations peacekeeper shot and killed an Eritrean civilian, close to the border with Ethiopia, which the peacekeepers patrolled, said officials on Thursday.

The UN said the unidentified man was killed on Saturday in the western Eritrean border town of Barentu after illegally entering a UN border post with a friend, refusing to heed warnings to leave and trying to attack a sentry.

Eritrean officials said they were investigating the murder.

Officials said that it was the first time an Eritrean had been killed by the UN peacekeepers since they were deployed to the region in early 2001 after a bloody war with Ethiopia ended.

A statement by the UN's Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) said: "Repeated calls by the sentry for the intruders to vacate the premises were not heeded..

"At some point, one of the intruders tried to attack the sentry, who fired shots to scare off the assailants. Unfortunately, one of the intruders was hit."

UN to co-operate with Eritrea

The statement said: "UNMEE deeply regrets this tragic loss of life and extends its sincere condolences to the family of the deceased and to the Eritrean authorities."

The UN said it would co-operate with the Eritrean authorities in any investigation, but declined to comment further or whether the Eritreans were armed.

Eritrea insisted that whatever the details of the incident, the man should not have been shot.

Eritrea's information minister Ali Abdu said: "The UN's mission is to keep peace, not to kill people.

"These people will be held accountable for the crime they have committed according to the law. You have to keep in mind this was a civilian."

Tensions along the border had increased since the UN accused Eritrea on October 16 of moving 1 500 troops and 14 tanks into a buffer zone established after their 2 1/2-year border war.

A day later, the UN security council called on Eritrea to pull out its forces from the zone.

- AP